Out of Time - 1
by warinbabylon
Summary: Tegan ventures to a new room on the TARDIS, Nyssa is remembered and two friends talk.


Disclaimer: This all belongs to the BBC and the actors that brought precious life to the characters. I don't own anything, no infringement is meant. It is all in fun.  
  
Author's Note: I'm clearing out the Hard Drive. Sorry to flood the place.  
  
**  
  
Out of Time – 1  
  
She had never been in that room. But since Nyssa had left the day previous, wandering the corridors, staying away from Turlough seemed the best idea. His shifty eyes and fake smile at the pain she felt at the loss of her friend was just too much to handle. As the door opened, she leaned in, looking for a place to lose herself for just a little while.  
  
It was hidden at the end of a corridor, nestled between the library and the conservatory. She had once thought that it was a study of some sort, or, possibly the Doctor's room. It would be just like him, she mumbled to herself, to have a room next to the library, probably with one of those connecting doors.  
  
Or, she supposed, it might have been the laboratory. The Doctor had always been rather secretive of that room. It might have been the cloisters as well. Or a place to hide secrets, locked in boxes, away from the prying eyes of companions with too much curiosity for their own good.  
  
Whatever she had thought the room was, it was nothing like it.  
  
It was open and endless. The ceiling was so high that it appeared obscured in mist or clouds. There was an aura, a faint feeling, that the ceiling was a light purple, or a pink, but as she tipped her head back to look, it only appeared distant and white. Around her, infinity stretched in the form of a finely mowed lawn. It was green and thick, the kind that children just loved to run through barefoot. On an impulse, she slipped her wedge heels off and stood, ankle deep, in the blades. With a frown, she realized that it was dew covered.  
  
There was a slight hill, maybe a half a mile away. Atop it was a single, large tree. Oak, she thought with a shake of her head. Other than the tree and the grass, there was nothing else as far as she could see. She bent and lined her shoes next to the door. And then, with a slow step, she set off toward the tree.  
  
"Well, Doc," she sighed as her feet became wet. "Somehow it does not surprise me that you have a meadow in here. You do have everything else…"  
  
As she neared the hill and the tree, she began to jog and then finally broke into a full run. Her jacket billowed out behind her and she felt her breath burning in her chest. She went up the hill hand over foot until she stood next to the tree. It was massive; the trunk was at least twice her girth. With a gasp, she put her hand against it and leaned, fighting the urge to hug it.  
  
She turned around to face the endless sight. The mist obscured the door, the walls and the ceiling. She was enclosed in a cocoon of wispy clouds, but somehow she didn't worry about finding her way out. When the time came, she would find the door. Besides, if she lost herself, that meant that Turlough couldn't find her. And that, at this moment, held a certain wonderful appeal to her.  
  
"Beautiful," she breathed, turning around slowly. "I wish you were here, Nyssa…this reminds me of you…"  
  
"As well it should."  
  
Tegan jumped as a familiar figure stepped out of the fog near the bottom of the hill. His hands were buried in his pockets, holding his cream coat back from his sweater. Everything else was as it would have been had they been exploring a planet: his white shirt, his cricket sneakers, his striped trousers. Indeed, the only thing that the Doctor was missing was his hat.  
  
"Where…."  
  
"Really, Tegan," the Doctor admonished quietly as he began to climb the hill. "We haven't left the TARDIS; asking from where I came is not really an interesting question to ask."  
  
She frowned as he gained his feet near her and the tree. "Well then, how about why, Doc? I did come here to be alone, you know."  
  
He nodded. "I did too. Interesting that we should both end up here." He gave her a wide smile. "Like minds?"  
  
"The same mental illness is more like it," she bit back. She took a deep breath and glanced back at the ceiling. "But since you are here, Doctor…what is this place?"  
  
"A artron inducement system room," he explained, waving his hand in the air for a moment. "Only this is a self programming system. It locates in your mind, my mind, or whoever else is in the room, the images that are most…relaxing or helpful and shows what it finds to the owner of the thought. It was placed here for long-traveling Time Lords…a kind of mental vacation place. It harnesses artron energy and solidifies matter from the output. That is why we have the grass…" He patted the trunk of the tree hard. "And our friend the tree, here."  
  
"A mental vacation place…" she shook her head. "It doesn't surprise me."  
  
"Hmm?" he asked, quietly, looking at the ceiling. "What? What doesn't surprise you?"  
  
"It's like a mental security blanket," she stated, crossing her arms over her chest. "With all the insanity that we see, this place would be necessary."  
  
He frowned at her, but remained quiet. The Doctor glanced around as Tegan had, while the girl tilted her head back to stare at the ceiling. "It's like…" she breathed.  
  
"…Traken," the Doctor said, recalling a conversation from long ago. "That is why it reminds you of Nyssa, Tegan. She made it this way, after Adric died." When he felt Tegan's gaze on the side of his face, he continued. "I never felt the need to change it. It was her place these last few months, what with you staying on Earth that time and Adric's…death."  
  
Tegan swallowed a lump in her throat at the mention of her friends. They both brought pain to her. Adric's was duller, like a scar healing well. But the pain from Nyssa was acute and strong.  
  
"Brave heart, Tegan," he offered, turning his gaze to her. "She wanted to stay on Terminus. Unlike you, she doesn't have a home to return to…"  
  
"But the TARDIS was her home," Tegan began, her voice heavy.  
  
He nodded. "Yes, but sometimes traveling will wear on one. Sometimes people wish for a place to settle, to stay. They want to have a purpose. And Nyssa found hers." He held out a hand and squeezed her shoulder. "Don't mourn her, Tegan…she does great things."  
  
Tegan lowered her head. "I miss her," she accused, without meaning to.  
  
"And you will. As will I. But that means she had an impact on our lives. Imagine your life without meeting her, Tegan," he said, quietly, earnestly. "Imagine not having that friendship. That, Tegan, that would need mourning."  
  
She let a lone tear fall from her eyes, before she sniffed and wiped it away quickly. "For all the things we went through, she was the best friend I ever had."  
  
The Doctor nodded. Then suddenly, he was stepping back, looking around at the base of the tree. "Aha…that would do well." He folded his legs and sat quickly. With a smile, he patted the grass next to him.  
  
"It's wet…you'll ruin that coat of yours," she warned.  
  
"Always pragmatic," he answered. "Come on, Tegan…I want to show you something," he implored.  
  
With a sigh as heavy as the world, she sat next to him. Then she leaned back on her hands. Nothing happened. After several minutes, she said: "Well?"  
  
"Think of her, Tegan. Think of what would best remind you of her," he said. "And close your eyes."  
  
She frowned, but let her head relax on her shoulders. She thought of her friend and the life that they had been living these last two years.  
  
"Wonderful," the Doctor breathed. She felt a tap on her shoulder and she opened her eyes slowly. She and he were sitting on nothing, in nothing…except stars. Around them were swirling gases of blue and purple with hints of pink.  
  
She yiped, and grasped at his arm. With a smile, he patted her hand reassuringly. "We are still on the TARDIS, Tegan. You are perfectly safe. And I have to say this is a truly excellent choice of venue…the Crab Nebula is it?"  
  
"As if I would know?" Tegan asked, sarcastically.  
  
Her hand did not lessen its hold on him. He squeezed his eyes shut and Tegan gasped. The images around them melted and molded together, slipping away. The stars disappeared; the gases swirled and whipped around them. And then, suddenly, a sky appeared above them…and it was burnt orange with silver clouds. The endless sea of stars became a hillside, slight and gentle in its slope. The gray grass was intermittent with red clay. In the distance, she could see a town, a city really. It had tall spires, and walls, metallic against that amazing sky. "Where?" she asked.  
  
"My home on Gallifrey," he said simply.  
  
"This is Gallifrey?" she pressed, immediately curious. "This is your home?"  
  
"What it looked like when I was young, yes," he answered. Tegan released his arm and stood, leaning back slightly against the slope of the hill. It was beautiful, and so very…strange to her.  
  
"It seems so…its like a watercolor painting…"  
  
The Doctor nodded, looping his arms around his knees. "Oh, Gallifrey is a beautiful planet, Tegan. A feast for the eyes. That city over there is the Capital."  
  
She smiled widely. "Unbelieveable…"  
  
He nodded. And rose to his feet. "Nyssa used this room for comfort, Tegan. I think she would want you to use it, if you needed to." As he spoke, the scenery tumbled away. It slowly became a simple lake view, complete with lapping waves at the shore. She and he stood on the bank, facing the water. He nodded with satisfaction. "Do what you need with it, Tegan." He rubbed his hands together gently, almost bashfully, and turned toward the distance and what she thought was the way out. "Turlough and I will see you when you are ready."  
  
He stepped off, slowly, but was stopped by her voice. "Doctor?"  
  
"Yes?" He turned to gaze at her. She stepped forward.  
  
She frowned, not quite knowing what to say, or how to say it. Her voice was uncharacteristically small when she asked: "Stay?"  
  
"I thought you wanted to be alone," he pointed out.  
  
"I don't want to mourn," she stated, almost regretfully.  
  
The Doctor nodded slowly. With a slow walk, he returned to her side. He flicked a finger to tease her nose and smiled. "You won't regret it, I promise you."  
  
"It will be the first time," she frowned playfully. The Time Lord sat down on the ground and waited until his friend sat alongside of him.  
  
As the scenery changed, he drew his knees to his chest. With a sigh and raised eyebrows, he began: "Do you want to return home, Tegan?"  
  
"Do you want to get rid of me?" she asked, both peeved and hurt.  
  
"What?" he appeared surprised, but recovered quickly. "Heavens, no, Tegan. I rather thought you would want Earth…familiar things and all that. You did ask me to take you home just a short time ago."  
  
"This time for good, I suppose," she mumbled.  
  
"I will admit that you are the first companion that wanted to come back traveling with me. Most, when they get firm ground underfoot, remain planet bound. I would not say never, but the law of probability is that once we part company, it will be with only a slight possibility that we would meet again. Unless, of course, I'm invited to visit."  
  
"Sure. Right. I can see that one. 'Mum…excuse the police box next to the telly…the Doc is visiting again.' "  
  
"Ah, Tegan…you have no flair for imaginative excuses and pardons."  
  
She frowned. "I don't want to go home."  
  
He glanced at her sideways. "Are you quite sure? With Nyssa gone…"  
  
"She was not my only friend on the TARDIS, Doc. I don't want to go home, not yet, anyhow."  
  
"True," he gave a closed mouth smile and then tapped her on the shoulder. "Very, very true. All right then. Stay you will. Now…let's see what I can show you," he said, closing his eyes. As the world around them changed, and melted, Tegan sighed.  
  
Being alone had its merits, she supposed, but being with a friend won hands down. The Doctor was not Nyssa, but he was himself and a dear friend of hers. That had not changed. "Lay it on me, Doc…no holds barred. Let's see this disaster area you call the universe." 


End file.
